


she'll be strong, just like you

by queen_serket



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), F/M, Fluff and Angst, POV Sokka (Avatar), Sokka is Suyin's father, They are in love with each other but don't realize it yet, Toph just gave birth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:41:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25134823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queen_serket/pseuds/queen_serket
Summary: His mind flashed back to those two nights last year. A little too much to drink. A gentle word. And a touch. And a kiss. Then suddenly his shirt was off and- No.He put a hand on the back of his head, fiddling with his wolf tail. If he had something to do with this, she would’ve said something by now. Right?---aka, Toph is giving birth and Sokka has some suspicions about who the father is.
Relationships: Toph Beifong/Sokka
Comments: 6
Kudos: 257





	she'll be strong, just like you

**Author's Note:**

> hey guys! this is my first fic in like... several years so please be gentle!
> 
> also as of right now this is a one-shot but if you guys like it then I can add more chapters :) let me know what you think in the comments below. any feedback is appreciated!

The sharp sounds of a baby crying echoed throughout the dorm hall of Air Temple Island _. It’s here- A new baby.  _ Sokka chuckled to himself. The idea seemed ridiculous. Toph, with another baby? He wasn’t sure if she would know what to do with it.

It felt like he had been waiting in the hallway for hours. He tried to pass the time reading, messing around with his boomerang, doing  _ something _ , but his nervous energy refused to let him relax. Pacing was all he could do. Across from him, Aang was fast asleep, with his back leaning up against the wall. He looked up at the clock on the wall. It was nearing two in the morning.

At least the airbender didn’t have any trouble relaxing.

To be fair, Aang had already gone through this more than enough. He and Katara had settled down pretty quickly after Republic City stabilized. Sokka loved that he had so many nieces and nephews running around, but he couldn’t imagine having those kids for himself.

Unless, he had this kid for himself.

His mind flashed back to those two nights last year. A little too much to drink. A gentle word. And a touch. And a kiss. Then suddenly his shirt was off and-  No. He put a hand on the back of his head, fiddling with his wolf tail. If he had something to do with this, she would’ve said something by now. Right?

His racing thoughts were interrupted by the wooden door sliding open to reveal his exhausted-looking sister. She laughed. “Sokka, you look pale as a ghost. You know you’re not the one giving birth, right?”

He stood quickly, brushing himself off. “Am I not allowed to worry for my friends? Jeesh,” he said, feeling the heat of a blush rise on his cheeks.

Katara took a step forward and nudged her sleeping husband. “Sweetie, wake up. It’s time to see Toph.”

“Hnnggh,” Aang groaned, stirring awake. “Just a few more minutes.”

Sokka saw the waterbender roll her eyes before turning back to him. “You go on in. I’ll try to rouse this Sleeping Beauty from his slumber.”

He nodded. The door slid open, and his steps echoed throughout the mostly quiet room. It was like any of the other dorms on the Island, but with a larger bed, several buckets of water, and a few rags strewn throughout the room. Several were bloody. Thank Tui and La that he wasn’t a girl.

Laid on top of the bed, covered in thin blankets, was Toph. Her hair was down and disheveled, but she looked… weirdly peaceful. As if she was completely captivated by the little bundle resting gently in her arms.

“Hey,” Sokka whispered. “How are you doing?”

She looked- well, didn’t  _ look-  _ at him. “We’re doing pretty good, Snoozles,” she chuckled, “All things considered. Do you want to say hi?”

Pushing down his nerves, he brought himself to the edge of the bed and sat down gently, as not to disturb the baby’s sleep. “Hi,” he said sheepishly. “It's a girl?”

Toph smiled. “Mhmm. Named Suyin. I think we’ll call her ‘Su’ for short.”

Sokka scooched in closer to the pair, and inspected the baby carefully. His heart swelled at the sight of her. She had a full head of dark hair, a button nose, the most adorable cheeks, smooth olive skin, her mother's green eyes, and-

Wait.

Olive skin.

His heart sped up in his chest. “Su is a beautiful name,” he said, swallowing hard. “She’ll be strong, just like you.”

The earthbender hit him lightly on the shoulder. “Don’t get all sappy on me now. She’s cute, but she’ll be a pain when she's older.”

Sokka laughed. “Always the optimist, Chief Beifong.” He stretched his arms out in an attempt to act casual. “Want me to grab the others for you? I think Lin’s playing with Tenzin, but I can go get her.”

After a beat of awkward silence, Toph cleared her throat. “Yeah, that’d be nice. It’s about time she meets her sister.”

He took that as his cue to stand up and start walking towards the exit, but some feeling kept tugging at him.  Toph was acting weird. She was never weird, especially towards him. And even though her hair was a mess and she was sweaty and exhausted, all he could think about were those nights.

All he could think about was his face buried in soft black hair with her hands travelling up and down his back. And how she smelled so _good._

He sighed and turned to face the bed again. This was about to be a hard conversation.

“Who’s her father?”

Toph blinked in surprise. “You know, it’s considered pretty rude to ask a woman that, Captain Boomerang.”

“Toph, I’m trying to have a serious conversation with you.”

“And can’t you see I’m trying to subtly avoid it?”

He ran his fingers along the short hair on the sides of his head and tried not to sigh in exasperation. “Look, I wouldn’t normally ask, but you know what's happened between us as well as I do, and if you need me to step up, I will, but I just need to know what’s going on-”

“Sokka, I got this on my own. I don’t need your help," she said in a stern voice.

“Well, is she mine?”

“What?”

“Is she mine? Am I her father?”

Her brows furrowed in frustration. “Even if I told you, it wouldn’t change anything. You have a life as a councilman. I have a career. We can’t be together- not really.”

“Toph, I’m not asking for anything else. Just the truth.” He strengthened his resolve, and stared into her milky white irises from across the room. “Do I have a daughter?”

A beat of silence filled the room, before she sighed. “Of course she’s yours, Sokka. There’s no one else it could be.”

His heart soared for a moment. She’s his. Spirits, she’s his. God, he has to tell Katara, and dad. Or well, no. His heart sank.

Toph was right. They weren’t dating, nonetheless married. He would have to be Chief of the Southern Water Tribe- and she wasn't going to come with him. She was stubborn, and beautiful, and independent, and would never want that in her future. Would never want  _ him  _ in her future.

Suyin would probably never even know who he was.

Toph interrupted his thoughts. “Well? Are you gonna get Lin or not?”

He nodded his head. “Yeah. Yeah, I'll get her. It’s just a lot to process. Can I- can I ask a couple things before then, though?”

“Out with it, Snoozles.”

“Can I be around? I want to spend time with her while I'm in the city. That’s all.”

“I didn’t expect you to skip out like Kanto. Of course you can come around.” She rocked Suyin gently. 

“Okay, good,” he said, relaxing his shoulders.

“So... What was the other thing?”

Sokka grinned, and joy shot through his chest.

“Can I hold her?”


End file.
